Where I come from…

Ruby was waiting for her lunch, playing with her fork.

“Just don’t comb your hair with your fork after you put it in your food,” I told her.

Blaine started laughing. “What some people would assume was a given…”

“Nothing can be assumed with Ruby,” I said.

“The funny part of that statement is that you didn’t tell her not to comb her hair with her fork. Just not to comb her hair with her fork after it was dirty. We’re so civilized.”

Yup.

Pierce Allan

This little guy:

made this little girl:
a big sister.
And this big brother:

is the happiest brother in the world.

Introducing Pierce Allan. 9lbs, 0 oz., 22 1/4 inches long, born October 1st, just before 7pm. He beat the midwife here, Daddy caught him, and it was perfect – and perfectly unbelievable. Birth story to follow, posted up with the others on the top right, as soon as I digest it all.

P.s. The older girls are thrilled too. But Ruby’s slightly peeved – but only slightly - she thinks she doesn’t have enough female playmates. Silliness.

Yet to be announced…

I wish I had an exciting “It’s a _____! Named ___________  __________! Weighing ___lbs. and ___oz.. (I can only imagine those will be big numbers. Because while my belly has seen better days, hosted many babies at this point, it’s not usually this large.) If I didn’t still look (and feel, I assure you) this miserable:

I’d have some news for you. But… Baby #6 is now later than all but one of it’s siblings, due 3 days ago and giving me little indication to say when it will decide to grace us with it’s presence.

But I’m told this can’t last forever.

Mr. Pot and Miss Kettle

“Would you stop asking so many questions, Ruby?” says Sterling during her typical Ruby-style the-same-questions-asked-20-different-ways interrogation during lunch today.

Sterling has a similar style.

It’s a pot and kettle situation. You just never realize how annoying you can be… until someone else does it to you. Huh.

Car seat jigsaw puzzle

My minivan seats 8 people. But not 6 car seats. Thankfully, Liberty is, at the ripe old age of eight, old enough to not require one by state law – so that leaves 5 car seats to fit into 6 seats. So yesterday, realizing that this baby will eventually come and should we need to go anywhere shortly after, my body might not like playing the car seat jigsaw game (Because it does now, for sure… if I could just fit between the rows back there!) and Blaine’s skills are lacking in the car seat installation process (and I’m fairly certain it’s a self-decided and self-imposed handicap) we installed another car seat and moved and shoved and at one point I found myself sitting in a car seat, knowing that if my currently oversized body couldn’t get it to fit, it wasn’t going to, no how, no way.

They are all in. In the only way we could get them to fit. No one will be riding on the roof. Eden might have permanently skinned knuckles from reaching in the hole next to her seat to buckle her booster, but she’s agreed to take one for the team. I didn’t know what else to do.

Now, we wait. Because, in Sterling’s words, this baby is taking a looooooonnnnnnggggg time to get borned.

FYI

When trying to teach your almost-one-year-old to blow out a flame with a lighter, use the utmost care. When they dive, watch the hair. Singed blond baby hair smells really, really bad.

We’ll try again when she turns two. That was a dismal failure.

Happy birthday, Charlie-girl.

Charlotte is one year old. How crazy is that? The year has flown. She’s been one of my easiest babies – once we got past not nursing (because #6 was on it’s way) and what to do about that. She’s happy, smiling, and always excited to see her daddy. She’s learned, in the last year, to sit up, roll over, sit herself up, do the splits, (Pretty sure this is due to my expanding waistline that she loves to sit on!) do the funniest belly-crawl I’ve seen, and now, just this week, she’s pulling herself up on things to stand up. She loves to eat – dirt included – and hates conflict. I can’t scold another child in her presence or I have to comfort the baby. Tender-hearted baby girl, she’s the most popular one in the house for all the other kids. She has constant entertainment and getting her belly laugh going is everyone’s goal. I’m amazed how she’s just fit into the crew of kids – including taking Liberty “Bitty” as her second momma – a fully acceptable substitute when Momma is busy.

She’s a love. I can’t wait to see who she becomes as she grows. Happy birthday, Charlotte Serenity.